


Vengeful

by avianscribe



Series: Collection of Prompts [9]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Blood, Gen, Unconsciousness, brotherhood era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:20:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24799075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/avianscribe/pseuds/avianscribe
Summary: An attack in an arcade leaves Noctis unconscious, and Prompto has to fend forbothof them.
Relationships: Prompto Argentum & Noctis Lucis Caelum
Series: Collection of Prompts [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1432558
Comments: 22
Kudos: 175





	Vengeful

**Author's Note:**

  * For [autumnstwilight (sewohayami)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sewohayami/gifts).



> In response to autumnstwilight's prompt, "Vengeful", for my June 2020 Birth Month Writing Prompts celebration!

‘This was _NOT_ what I signed up for,’ Prompto thought desperately, as he clutched Noct’s unconscious body to his chest and squeezed the two of them between the last row of arcade machines. There was barely room for them without pushing the consoles out, but if he did that, they’d be found.

They couldn’t be found.

Noctis was bleeding from a wound above his hairline, rivulets running down his face. Prompto swallowed hard to keep his gorge from rising, and then settled as well as he could among the power cords and detritus of the arcade that had filtered between the machines and couldn’t be reached by regular cleaning.

Footsteps were approaching.

“Come on out, little prince.” 

A woman’s voice. That tracked with what Prompto had seen. Which hadn’t been much. He’d only just had time to see something swinging for Noct’s head, and to catch him before he fell. There’d been a sound like a gunshot then, and lots of screaming and commotion, and Prompto had taken advantage of the chaos to drag Noctis away.

“You can’t get away now,” the crazy lady was saying now. “I’ll find you soon enough, and then the King of Lucis will know what it’s like to lose a son to the war!”

Prompto shivered, and was glad Noctis wasn’t awake to hear this. 

They weren’t even supposed to _be_ at the arcade. They’d slipped away right after school, hoping to get a good hour in before Ignis started pestering Noctis about his whereabouts. 

Now there were footsteps coming down their aisle, slowly; whoever-it-was was taking her time. Prompto couldn’t see anything from where he was, but he listened carefully for the sound of footfalls, tense and not sure what to do.

He’d only been Noct’s friend for a bare month. He’d had a quick lesson on what to do if Noctis was ever threatened, and it amounted to “run away”, but… they were alone. And Noctis was knocked out before either of them could react.

He needed to contact someone, to let them know what was going on. But he didn’t have the contact info for any of Noct’s associates. He wasn’t quite at that point yet. 

Then he gasped. 

_Noct_ had a phone. 

Quietly, he patted at Noctis to find his pockets -- his phone was inside his school jacket, in the inner breast pocket. He slowly slipped it out.

A commotion somewhere distant, and the woman’s feet pattered away into another part of the arcade. “Where are you, little prince?” she called. 

Prompto swallowed, and stared at Noct’s phone. He found the power button -- and then was faced with a request for a passcode. Then the phone pinged in his hand, and a notification popped up on the lockscreen. Prompto panicked for a heartbeat, and froze, hoping the sound hadn’t given them away… but he didn’t hear the crazy lady’s footsteps, thank the Six. 

He looked back at the phone in his hand. Prompto could read ‘Specs [3:48pm] >> Your Highness, I need to know your loca…” before it exceeded the limits of the notification box. He pulled Noct’s limp hand up and pressed Noct's index finger to the button on the back of the phone to unlock the screen. 

Prompto dismissed the notification and scrolled through screens full of game icons, looking for the big red button icon. He’d asked about it once. 

_“It’s my panic button,”_ Noctis had explained. _“I’m only supposed to touch it if there’s a problem, so don’t ever touch it. They won’t think the joke’s funny.”_

Prompto jabbed the button. 

He wasn’t sure what he expected to happen.

He didn’t expect a map to open on the screen, or for a little red dot to pop up on it. He was pretty sure if he looked closely that it was glowing right where the arcade was. He waited for something else to happen -- for a call or text or some other notification, but the red dot just blinked at him.

He needed to get in touch with Noct’s retainers, but he didn’t have any of their contacts on his own phone. He jabbed the home button to get to the contacts, but… nothing happened. It was stuck on the map. He wasn’t going to find what he needed that way.

He exhaled in frustration and shoved the phone back in Noct’s breast pocket. Then he pulled out his own phone. He tried a quick search to see if he could find even an office number for Gladio or Ignis, but… it was useless. In their positions, it wasn’t going to be as easy to find their contact numbers with a Moogle Search. 

The footsteps rang out again, coming closer, and he froze. 

“My brother went to the front lines and never came back,” the woman was saying now. “While good citizens are fighting your war for you, you’re safe and cushy in your suite in the damn Citadel, living the high life! Well, not anymore!”

There was a thump and a crash and -- _had she pushed over one of the consoles??_

The spike of fear in Prompto’s chest sharpened. Reasoning with this woman was probably gonna be impossible. They needed someone’s help, and fast… but no one knew where they were. He scrambled back through his brain to see if anything Noctis had told him would help if they ever got in a situation, but his anxiety brain wasn’t helpful at all.

A sound echoed from the front of the arcade -- someone with a megaphone. _“Drop your weapon and come out with your hands up!”_

Nearer at hand, their assailant growled in frustration. “Not until the Prince surrenders to me,” she said -- but not loud enough for the people at the front of the store to hear. 

Prompto had no problem hearing, though. He shivered. 

Noctis chose that moment to moan. 

_‘No no no no no no…!’_ Prompto gibbered, and his ragged breathing sounded harsh in his ears. “C’mon, buddy, please… Stay quiet for me,” he whispered.

The woman’s footsteps paused, and Prompto gulped in a breath. Then they started up again, moving closer… then she grunted, and with a screech against the floor, one of the consoles shifted -- and there she was, peering down at them. Prompto blinked up at her, his heart in his throat. 

“THERE you are!” she said, and her face twisted in malicious glee.

Then several things happened. 

A wall exploded somewhere. The thunder of booted feet echoed through the arcade. The crazy lady whirled around and disappeared. “No, you won’t take it away from me…!” she screamed, but there was a series of sharp jabs and grunts, and then another shadow filled the gap between the consoles. 

The shadow put a hand to its ear, and a stern voice that Prompto thought he recognized from somewhere said “Target secured,” and rattled off a bunch of numbers that Prompto guessed were some kind of code. 

Then the figure shifted, and a beam from one of the arcade’s spotlights crossed his face and… it was _Cor the freaking Immortal._

“Prompto Argentum?” Cor said. 

“Y… yes sir,” Prompto squeaked. 

Noctis groaned again and started to stir. 

“Noct!” Prompto said, and clutched him tighter. 

“You’re wedged in there pretty tight,” Cor said. “Let’s get you two out of there.”

Pretty soon he and the other Crownsguard had moved the game cabinets, and medics pulled Noctis off of Prompto. Noctis groaned again, and blinked in the lights. “Whu…” he said, but the medics shushed him.

“Easy, Highness,” one of them said. “We’ve got you now.”

Then Cor was leaning over Prompto, offering a hand up, and patting him on the back once he was on his feet. 

Another rush of footsteps, and a tall, dark-haired teen -- probably Gladio; Prompto hadn’t met him yet, and only knew him by reputation -- pushed through the crowd. “Noct!” he yelled. “Noct, where--” 

Cor gestured in the direction of the medics, and Noctis, who they were just laying down on a stretcher, and probably-Gladio rushed over to them. 

Then Ignis emerged from the crowd of Crownsguard, too. As soon as he spotted Prompto, he rushed over. “Prompto,” he said, a little breathlessly. “For all that I disapprove of you two sneaking away after school… You did well.” He inhaled and put a hand on Prompto’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

Prompto’s face heated up. “Sorry,” he said.

“Don’t apologize,” Igins said. “You did exactly what you should.”

“Good thinking, finding His Highness’s phone,” Cor said. “We wouldn’t have known he was in danger without it.”

“Heh heh,” Prompto said. “I just… didn’t have anyone’s number. And Noct told me not ever to push that, so…”

“You did good, Argentum,” he said. “Quick thinking.”

The warmth in his cheeks settled down into his heart, and he couldn’t help a smile. “Thank you, sir,” he said.


End file.
